Archive for Jason Rita–Badwater Ultramarathon

Coach Al here. A few weeks ago I crewed for Ultrarunner Jason Rita as he took on the hardest footrace on the planet, the Badwater Ultramarathon. My experience in Death Valley was extraordinary on so many levels. I want to take a few minutes in this video to present a synopsis of the training and racing tenets I affirmed during my time in the desert.

There are three takeaways I want to share with you, and I go into more detail on each point in the video. These issues have been on my mind a lot of late as Lisbeth Kenyon, an athlete I coach who happens to be the 45-49 Ironman Age Group World Champion, takes on the Norseman Xtreme Triathlon on August 5. While a number of racers I saw at Badwater did not have these three elements in place to support their racing, I know Lisbeth is fully equipped and ready to handle the most grueling one-day race in the world.

The Importance of the Basics and the Fundamentals
It always circles back to the basics, doesn't it? In the video I talk about how essential it is to nail fueling and hydration, have a race execution plan, and be mentally prepared for what may come your way. Sure, we talk about this stuff a lot as athletes. But the essential importance of these elements are laid bare in the desert, that's for sure. It's important to revisit.

Strength, Strength, Strength
When you are in an endurance race (or even a 5K for that matter) and you tire, your posture goes to pot, the body begins to collapse, and the effects of gravity and ground reaction forces beat down on you. It is then that the truth rises regarding how STRONG your foundation really is. You can subscribe to this running method, or consciously try to employ a particular technique, but when you are deep into it, what comes to the fore is your strength--or lack thereof.

At Pursuit Athletic Performance our mantra is MOVE STRONG. What I saw out in Death Valley was clear. If you want to finish strong, you have to first move strong. There is no doubt about that.

MindsetThe other truth made fully evident by the rigors of Badwater is the issue of mindset. How you think about yourself is profound. What your negative critic tells you, and how you react to those low (sometimes very low) moments is key to success or failure. Developing a mindset that allows for unlimited possibilities opens up so many opportunities in training, racing, and life as a whole.

Badwater was an extraordinary experience, and I hope these musings are helpful to you. Let me know if you have any comment or questions.

Q: What do Haiti, the Badwater Ultramarathon, and Pursuit Athletic Performance have in common?

A: Jason Rita

Jason Rita, an accomplished ultra-distance marathoner and long distance adventure racer is a client and good friend of ours who does extraordinary things.

Starting today, Jason is competing in the Badwater Ultramarathon, the most demanding and extreme running race offered anywhere on the planet. Badwater begins at 280 feet below sea level going through Death Valley with temperatures hovering around 130 F. The race covers 135 miles with climbs totaling 13,000 ft of vertical ascent over three mountain ranges culminating with a finish at the top of Mt. Whitney at 8300 ft. As Jason takes on this beast of a race, our own Coach Al will be by his side as one of the support crew. In fact, he began his race prep here at Pursuit Athletic Performance. You can watch the video here.

Jason and Pursuit are also teaming up to raise awareness and funds for Haiti's isolated Bainet community. For every Gait Analysis purchased from July 15 to Aug 15, we will donate 15% of the proceeds to the Delaware Medical Relief Team, the agency fighting the effects of "bad water," including cholera in Bainet.

With the economic challenges facing the western world, it is easy forget that the 2010 earthquake killed over 250,000 people in Haiti, displacing many more, and caused tremendous health challenges. In response, Jason and his wife created a non-profit, 501c3 called Delaware Medical Relief Team (DMRT).

DMRT immediately responded to the crisis by sending to Haiti eight medical teams, hundreds of volunteers, and raising hundreds of thousands of dollars used for medical aid and supplies.

At that time with the spotlight on Haiti, governments around the world made huge promises. As these countries' economic challenges worsened, they failed to deliver promised money, infrastructure, and aid. In response, Jason and DMRT are once again picking up the call to action, and Pursuit Athletic Performance is backing the cause.

The goal is to help the isolated community, Bainet in its health struggles with the consequences of bad water. DMRT has committed to working with the local health clinic to transform it into a functioning hospital.

In addition, we are planning a marathon from the ocean-side port town of Jackmal to Bainet! Our plan is to use the event to help Bainet in three major ways: as an incentive to local authorities to rebuild infrastructure, an event that will create a recurring source of revenue, and a way to raise additional aid.

If you are interested in supporting this marathon initiative in ANY WAY... whether it be marathon participation to various levels of support, please use leave your information on our interest form, and we'll be in touch!

It's the day before the start of the Badwater Ultramarathon! I'm here in Death Valley to serve as support crew for friend and client Jason Rita who will take on this epic 135-mile beast of a race starting tomorrow.

Badwater is the hardest footrace on the planet. As Jason will face temperatures as high as 125?F, I thought it would be an opportune time to post a few tips to help you in your summer racing. As Jason's crew, we need to help him handle the fundamental triad needed for racing in the heat--hydration, electrolytes, and calories-- or Jason will have no chance of finishing this race. A DNF or poor performance can happen to any of us as we face racing in the summer--even if the heat is not as extreme as what we'll face in Death Valley. The video below gives you my thoughts and guidance.

We will be posting updates as we can from Badwater to give you an insiders view on such an epic event, and to let you know how Jason is doing. He is dedicating the race to raise funds to help alleviate the effects of "bad water" in Haiti, and we are teaming up to help him do that. You can read about our efforts here.

On July 16, Pursuit client Jason Rita will begin the the most demanding and extreme running race offered anywhere on the planet--the legendary Badwater Ultramarathon. Jason will run 135 miles (217km) non-stop from Death Valley to Mt. Whitney, CA in temperatures up to 130F (55c). When he takes on the beast known as Badwater, our own Coach Al will be by his side as one of the support crew. We'll fill you in on details of the race as they unfold!

Jason has accomplished incredible feats in the world of ultra-endurance running including an unassisted speed summit of Mt. Kilimanjaro, and the Himalaya 100-mile stage race, which included a third place finish at the Everest Challenge Marathon. He finished third in the Leadville 100 "Leadman" competition, which is comprised of the Leadville Trail Marathon, a 50-mile mountain bike, a 50-mile trail run, 100 mile mountain bike, and a 100 mile trail run. The list goes on and on.

So how does an athlete with such an amazing and accomplished running pedigree begin his prep for Badwater?

By running?

Nope.

By learning how to MOVE through our Gait Analysis.

Our hope is that every athlete learns how important it is to begin their own epic journey--whether it be taking on a 5K or Badwater--with solid functional strength, and stable movement that is the foundation for conquering your hopes and dreams. Let's hear what Jason learned from the experience in this video.